Cartographica Neerlandica Background for Ortelius Map No. 167

Title: PERSICI | SIVE SOPHO:|RVM REGNI | TYPVS. [Image of the kingdom of the Persians or Sophies]. (Bottom left:) "Cum priuilegio." [With privilege]. (7 lines in Caspian sea:) MARE HYRCANVM SIVE CASPIVM | "hodie varijs nominsbus (!) indigetant; Rutheni illud Chualenska Mo:|re vocant. Mauri Bobar Corsun (vocabulo cum sinu Arabico cõ:|muni) quod mare clausum significat. Video præterea ab alijs ali:|ter appellari, vti Mare de Bachu, Cunzar, Giorgian, Terbestan, Co:|rusum, a regionibus nempe & locis vicinis denominationibus. Lacus | totius orbis maximus est, & salsus piscibus abundat". [The Hyrcanian or Caspian sea is nowadays referred to by various names; the Ruthenians call it Chualenska More, and the Mauri call it Bobar Corsun (the same word as the one they use for the Arabic Gulf), which means enclosed sea. I observe that it is called differently by others, such as Mare de Bachu, Cunzar, Giorgian, Terbestan, and Corusum after the names of adjacent areas and places. It is the largest lake in the entire world, and has salt water. It has fish in abundance.] (Text bottom left at mile scale:) "Scala leucarum, siue Farsangarum 3000. paßuum: quibus Persæ & | Mauri, qui magnam Asiæ partem occupant hodie locorum interualla | metiuntur; quæ mensura & vox cum antiquo vocabulo Parasanga | conueniunt. Ceteri fere Asiatici per dies locorum distantias | numerant". [Scale of miles or Farsangæ of 3000 strides with which the Persians and Maures, who occupy a large part of Asia, measure the distance between places. Both the measure and its name correspond with the ancient [Greek] parasanga. The other Asians usually measure distances in [travel] days].

Plate size: 352 x 504 mm
Scale: 1 : 6,000,000
Identification number: Ort 167 (Koeman/Meurer: 49, Karrow: 1/69, van der Krogt AN: 8200:31).

Occurrence in Theatrum editions and page number:

1570L(AC)49 (225 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: mentaria rerum Persicarum.),
1570L(B)49 (100 copies printed) (last line, centred: Nicolai Geni Patricij Veneti Cõmentaria rerum Persicarum.),
1571L49 (275 copies printed) (last line, centred like one line above it: Nicolai Geni Patricij Veneti Cõmentaria rerum Persicarum.),
1571D/1573D49 (350 copies printed) (last line, centred like 3 lines above it: daer in behooren te syne.),
1572G49Koler (pasted over p.49 of a 1570L edition; few copies printed) (last line, left aligned, mostly on Gothic script: zu disem Büchlein gedruckt ist/Besihe aber auch der Iesuiter Episteln/Und Nicolai Geni des Venedischen Geschlechters/Commentaria,der Persischen geschicht.),
1572/1573G49 (225 copies printed) (last line, centred like 3 lines above it: Ormus der Stain darin zu sein sich gezimmen.),
1572/1574F49 (225 copies printed) (last line, centred like 3 lines above it, in cursive script like the entire text: "de Pierre pretieuse,pour y estre enchaßée."),
1573L(A)64 (40 copies printed) (first capital S of second title line is above first capital R of PERSARVM of first text line. Last line, centred like 2 lines above it, in cursive script like the entire text: "Veneti Commentaria rerum Persicarum."),
1573L(B)64 (40 copies printed) (first capital S of second title line is above capital S of PERSARVM of first text line. Last line, centred like 2 lines above it, in cursive script like the entire text: "Veneti Commentaria rerum Persicarum."),
1574L64 (175 copies printed) (large page number, 11 mm; last line, italic like the entire text, and centred like 2 lines above it: "Veneti Commentaria rerum Persicarum". ; 7th line from the bottom ends: "nobilitatê" ; 5th line from the bottom ends: "Jo-" ),
1575L64 (100 copies printed) (small page number, 7 mm; last line, italic like the entire text and centred like 2 lines above it: "Veneti Commentaria rerum Persicarum". ; 7th line from the bottom ends: "nobilitatem" ; 5th line from the bottom ends: "Jo-" ),
1579L(A)85 (250 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "Persicarum. Mediam regionem pulchrè describit Polybius,lib.5." ; page number 85 positioned leftish below "rerum" of penultimate text line.),
1579L(B)85 (250 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "Persicarum. Mediam regionem pulchrè describit Polybius,lib.5." ; page number 85 positioned below the space between "Veneti" and "Commentaria" of penultimate text line.),
1580/1589G85 (350 copies printed) (last line, centred like 4 lines above it, in Gothic script like the entire text: herrlich.),
1581F85 (400 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "neau,la ville d'Ormus deuroit seruir de Pierre precieuse,pour y estre enchaßée."),
1584L95 (750 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in italic script like the entire text: "Persicarum. Mediam regionem pulchrè describit,Polybius,lib.5."),
1587F95 (250 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "un Anneau, la ville d'Ormus deuroit seruir de Pierre pretieuse, pour estre enchaßée".)
1588S95 (300 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: pcion de la region,Media,hallaras linda en Polybio lib, 5.),
1592L103 (525 copies printed) (last line, left aligned, in cursive script like the entire text: "amicus noster Petrus Bizarrus".),
1595L109 (500 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: mas Minadoius,at hic Italica lingua.),
1598F110 (525 copies printed) (last line, full width, cursive like the entire text: "vn Anneau,la ville d'Ormus deuroit seruir de Pierre pretieuse,pour y estre enchassie".),
1598/1610/1613D78 (100 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: ren te zyne.),
1601L109 (200 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: Minadoius , at hic Italica lingua.),
1602G112 (250 copies printed) (last line, centred like 4 lines above it, in Gothic script like the entire text: herrlich.),
1602S112 (250 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: nadoro, todauia en lengua Italica.),
1603L112 (300 copies printed) (text, but not page number and typesetting, identical to 1609/1612L; last line, left aligned: ius, at hic Italica lingua.),
1606E109 (300 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: "rus, Thomas Minadoius" hath done the like, but in the Italian tongue.),
1608/1612I121 (300 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: lingua Italica.),
1609/1612L122 (300 copies printed) (text, but not page number and typesetting, identical to 1603L; last line, left aligned: at hic Italica lingua.),
1609/1612/1641S122 (325 copies printed) (last line, left aligned: Persica,pero mas moderna escriuio Thomaso Minadoro, todauia en lengua Italica.).

Approximate number of copies printed: 8175.

States: 167.1 as described.
167.2: from 1584 onwards, the strap carried on the back of the mermaid in the lower left used to have vertical hatching on the lowest two blocks only. Now the hatching is extended upwards. Hachrung of coastlines extended from 3 to 5 mm. Cartouche bottom right reworked.
167.3: from 1588 onwards, most of the topographical names have been re-engraved in a less elegant and more crude manner than was the case in the previous states. The last two letters of "Naugracot/mons" middle right now has the last two letters of "mons" connected.

Cartographic sources: Gastaldi 1564 Asia Minor, Ortelius' 1567 Asia (Karrow p. 246, Meurer p. 151.

References: Alai, Cyrus (2005) "General Maps of Persia. 1477-1925". Handbook of Oriental Studies: Section One, The Near and Middle East. Ed. by H. Altenmüller, B. Hrouda, B. A. Levine, R. S. O’Fahey, K. R. Veenhof, C. H. M. Versteegh, Volume Eighty, Leiden-Boston, Brill, 317 pp.

Text

Bibliographical sources

Topographical names